……. The older I get the more I try to convince myself that I have this game of life more figured out, more than I did in my past. I’ve come to the realization that this thought is bullshit. You grow and you change and live and you learn but in the end I believe there is some thing that will never change…. Maybe it’s called your SOUL? Maybe it comes from your heartor your balls or somewhere deep inside your skull? Inside everyone there is a primal drive that you should follow… unless of course that drive is a child molester or rapist, then you should put a gun to your head and do us all a favor. But that good drive… that drive that creates, music, art, bridges, trains, friends, love, breweries, and family. Primally inside of me, I have always loved noisy dangerous things… which is slightly odd because normally I’m a pretty quiet person. The first motorcycle I wanted was a Briggs & Stratton lawn mower engine mini bike thing. I was probably about 6 or 7 and the image of it kept me up at night. I wanted it so bad. I wanted to move on it, to make noise and watch the world go by at a faster pace. I ended up buying that bike for $15 dollars, it had a broken rear brake, no throttle, and constantly broke……but it was such a rush. And years later I found the skateboard, once again attracted to the sound, I heard one squealing power slides outside the house, and all I could think was “ I’ve got to make that NOISE”…. That was it, the beginning of the end and the end to not knowing what I wanted to do with this life. I now knew that you could pour that drive into those things that grabbed you… It’s endless and it’s what you make of it. The critics don’t have it or have been to scared to follow it, so they become bitter followers of others. (it’s ok dude, become the best ballerina…. Do us all a favor and be happy) I love these motorcycles and I love choppers they are funky and dangerous but they are alive. Yes it gets white washed and acid washed and brainwashed, but in the end it will work itself out. And you can do you and I can do me and we can follow that drive. Paulo wrote it’s all about fun…. And he’s right but it’s also about pain, that pain of pouring yourself into your passion and not always coming out on top. Sacrifice and balance. A front flat tire on the freeway, a broken chain on the bridge, a trip to the hospital, or losing a friend. Keep going because the moving forward in the things that we love is all that we have. I love these old bikes and where they lead me. Max Schaaf Winter of 2012